Crossing the boarders. My way. One year long journey.

“We saw you disappearing in the sky, first like a quite distinctive silhouette and then turning into a tiny dot somewhere in the sky”.
That is what my girlfriend told me after I left Donetsk International Airport on the 19th of September and that is how my one-year-long journey began. A year, during which I had to cross an enormous number of small and big boarders and boundaries. Some of them were real and quite visible, I mean boarders between countries, and some of them were only perceptible, but still existed, I mean “mental” boarders, those between different people of different nationalities.
Was I disappearing to come back another person? Or to come back at all? What expected for me somewhere out there? All these questions have been awaiting for being answered. During the journey I had to make certain decisions that influenced my life, I had to cross the boarders between countries and sometimes build bridges between people and me, different people, not like those I saw before. Or were they really so different? That is also the question that bothered me. Could I imagine that I could become a “criminal” in a European country? (That was not completely my fault, but I really did). But let’s be consecutive!

1. Leaving home or never stop hoping!
The first border or boundary that I had to cross was my personal life. In fact, that is not that easy to leave everything you have NOW: the job, the family, your friends, your girlfriend, your environment in the name of something in the FUTURE. But my personal natural desire for the constant development, development of the own personality and mental outlooks, simply inquisitiveness and curiosity (that can reach the Mars sometimes, you know) turned out to be stronger. And I did it. I made up my mind to participate in the European Voluntary Service program. And that is where I come across the very first obstacle, my first boundary to cross. Looking for the suitable (read: any) project turned out to be a real difficulty. I’ve started surfing the “Youth in Action” database since April 2012. But anytime I submitted my application, I got the answer: “sorry, we are full now”, “we do not accept applications any more” or simply no answer at all. This lasted for a couple of months. Naturally, I got frustrated and tired of receiving negative replies all the time. I almost quit the idea of participating in the program. Until August 2012. They say: “The opportunity comes, when you least expect it”. In August 2012 I got a mass mailing letter, stating that a volunteer from Ukraine urgently needed for the project in Germany. I knew just a scarce piece of information about the organization but something told me: “That is your chance. Grab it or leave the idea!” Sure I submitted my application… In a bit more than a month, mostly due to the Visa difficulties (one more annoying boundary to cross) I found myself in a quite distant place from my home. Blossin, Germany was its name!
So the first boundary was over: never stop hoping!

2. The barrier of understanding
From the very first day I had to face the problem of understanding. Understanding the language, though I could speak a bit, understanding the life-style, understanding the mentality, understanding my neighbours and understanding the easiest every-day things, that seemed simple and clear to the natives. After a couple of minutes of listening to the language my brain ceased to comprehend any longer. The first couple of months were the most complicated ones. I had to absorb information, the basics, but my mind often failed to, while the flow of information never stopped. For me it was quite a challenge simply to go to the supermarket, not to say about a single trip to Berlin.
At the beginning of October we had to pass the youth team-leader course in order to get a license allowing to work with teenagers in Germany. Right there I realised what it is like, when you understand what people are talking about, but you cannot express yourself, because of the lack of words in a foreign language. All I could do was trying to say something in a broken German, helping myself with gestures. But I did it and passed the course, no matter what it cost me.
It seemed to me like it was a high time to have some kind of a pause and relaxation. I needed somebody like me, who could understand me. And I got that pause. First it was an intensive two-week language course in Berlin and after that an introductory seminar in Witzenhausen for volunteers from all over the Germany. I met people, who had the same problems as I did and both events helped me to realize that I was not alone face-to-face with my fears.
And this is how I learned how to overcome another boundary: the boundary of understanding.

3. A cultural barrier
Often people asked me, where I come from and when I told them that I come from Ukraine, I was shocked that about half of them didn’t even know, where the country situated. One teenager asked me, if it was somewhere near the equator. When I replied: “People, actually this is the biggest country that is located solely on the European continent and from the geographical point, Europe’s centre is also situated in Ukraine”, the expression on their faces changed dramatically from inquisitiveness to astonishment.
We in Ukraine have also some stereotypes about Europe but the aim if this piece of writing is not talking about stereotypes. I wanted to say, that this year really helped me (and I do hope some other people I worked with) to overcome the cultural boundary. Within the whole year I met people literally from all over the world: I led courses for German children and teenagers, I helped to organize international exchanges with Poles, Croats, Slovenes, Norwegians, I spent two seminars with Danes, Swedes, Finns, Spaniards, I played football with Mexicans and Argentinians, I learned German with the British and Brazilians. People may be different in the way they look like, the way they speak, but what I did understand is that people are always the same in the way they think and what they do. The year I spent here in Germany taught me to understand people, no matter where they come from, taught me to be tolerant. And I believe, this is an important boundary to cross.

4. Home barrier
The last thing I wanted to talk about I call “the home barrier”. Very often people asked me, what I was going to do after my EVS project, why don’t I want to stay here in Germany. And for me that was always quite a difficult question to answer. I know quite a lot of people who do want to come here to Germany and stay, not only from my native country, but I met a lot of people from far-away western and eastern countries.
Personally for me the whole year was emotionally rich, I learned a lot of new things and got acquainted with totally new skills, such as climbing and canoeing for example. For the moment I’ve got experience in being a team leader, leading courses for groups and organizing international exchanges. And now I’m ready to accept a new challenge, a challenge of coming back home and trying to apply all these skills and abilities there. I’m really thankful to all those people who helped me on my way to overcome all these obstacles, barriers, boarders and boundaries. For me this year has almost come to an end but I know, wherever and whenever I would have a chance to help somebody else in overcoming his personal boundaries, I would do it! That is the sense of being a person – in helping each other!